Scroll × Old Fogey

"The way he subconsciously exerts force during combat seems to have been invisibly corrected."

"His force exertion has become more standard and energy-efficient."

"Corrected in an invisible way."

Danzo's exposed eye narrowed slightly, as if digesting this concept.

"It seems Nara Dan's Taijutsu cultivation has reached a realm I cannot comprehend."

"Even a technique taught casually has such miraculous functions."

"Is the boost from the Eight Inner Gates really that significant for him?"

"Isn't that a forbidden technique that consumes one's potential?"

After pondering for a moment, Danzo spoke abruptly, pointing at the Root ninja beside him.

"Ino Rinya, you will teach this technique to him."

"The so-called Stance Training."

Ino Rinya's face turned bitter upon hearing this, filled with hesitation.

"Lord Danzo, it is not that I am unwilling."

"But this technique was guided by Teacher Nara using a strange power."

"Every time I practice, Teacher Nara has to be there to correct me at every turn."

"I don't understand the principles or structure of this technique at all."

"I can use it myself, but I truly don't know how to teach it."

In National Martial Arts, there is a saying: a true transmission is just one strand of Jin Force, while a false transmission is ten thousand scrolls of books.

The inheritance of every boxing style requires the previous generation to use their own Jin Force to scour and refine the body of the next generation, only then can the specific Jin Force of that style slowly take shape.

The same principle applies to Stance Training; if you don't understand the underlying principles, you cannot teach it simply by talking.

Danzo frowned at these words, though he did not doubt that Ino Rinya was being unwilling or holding back secrets.

On one hand, Ino Rinya's aptitude was limited, and Nara Dan would certainly have taken precautions with his own techniques; even the Byakugan required the Caged Bird, and many secret techniques in the Ninja World were bound deep within one's memory, rendering even illusion-based searches ineffective.

On the other hand, Danzo held something over Ino Rinya that he could not resist, so he wasn't afraid of a mere Genin playing tricks.

"It doesn't matter if you cannot teach it."

"Just keep everything normal under Nara Dan."

"But do not harbor any crooked thoughts."

Danzo's cold gaze, sharp as a blade, fixed on Ino Rinya.

"Otherwise, you know the consequences."

"Your younger sister is still attending the Ninja Academy, after all."

Upon hearing about his sister, Ino Rinya nodded hurriedly, showing no sign of resentment toward Danzo's orders.

"However, you don't need to be too nervous."

Danzo possessed the basic qualities of a superior; he knew how to balance the stick with a carrot, and he was far better at painting a grand picture than the Third.

"As long as you perform well,"

"I will provide you and your sister with more Ninjutsu resources,"

"I might even get your sister a position at the hospital or the academy."

"These are not problems at all."

For women, whose physical constitution differs greatly from men, staying away from the battlefield and dangerous missions is undoubtedly the best path.

After all, female ninjas who achieve fame and success like Tsunade are a tiny minority; the survival rate of the vast majority of female ninjas on the battlefield is far lower than that of men.

Without waiting for Ino Rinya to react, Danzo performed the Body Flicker Technique and departed on his own.

In his view, a ninja whose weakness was held in his hand was nothing more than a flea, to be squeezed however he pleased.

Even if something went wrong, it was merely a wasted move in his grander scheme.

Watching Danzo leave, Ino Rinya's expression was filled with deep anxiety and uncertainty.

No one wants to be threatened by having their secrets held over them.

He was not a traditional Root ninja whose brain had been washed away; Ino Rinya was just an ordinary civilian Genin.

He had been chosen by the Third to fill a quota at the time.

Because Nara Dan had accepted a mission outside of the graduation season, there were almost no unemployed Genin available.

Thus, he was selected after his teammates had all perished in a single mission.

Danzo's approach came later.

With Danzo's fly-like personality of infiltrating every crack, he would naturally never give up any opportunity to infiltrate Nara Dan.

Under normal circumstances, Ino Rinya would naturally have no choice but to be bent over by life.

He stood silently in place for a moment before returning to his humble dwelling.

From a hole in the floorboards, he retrieved the scroll that Nara Dan had given him back then.

That's right, he had hidden the existence of the scroll from Danzo, and the contents within had caused a shift in his mindset.

Although Ino Rinya treated this scroll like a prized treasure, wiping every speck of dust off it, it actually did not contain any powerful secret techniques like the scroll belonging to Hyuga Nana.

The scroll was unconventional; upon opening it, there was only a single line of text.

It was a question:

"What do you want?"

Ino Rinya stared at this line of text, and the entire room fell into a long, heavy silence.

The Hokage Office was always shrouded in a haze of smoke.

But today, it seemed an uninvited guest had arrived.

"Bang!"

The office door was kicked open with brute force.

Standing behind the door was a slender figure with beautiful blonde hair.

"Old man! Why did you call me here?!"

Her clear, beautiful voice carried immense impatience, and if one listened closely, it even sounded a bit slurred.

The Third heard this and offered a bitter, helpless smile.

"Tsunade, can't you knock before entering?"

"Don't have that habit."

A pair of red flushes hung on Tsunade's exquisite face, and a distinct purple diamond-shaped mark was visible on her forehead.

Her slender figure swayed unsteadily, and the movement of her assets was enough to keep any man from looking away.

"Tsunade, have you been drinking again?"

The Third frowned and sighed.

It seemed Tsunade's heartache was becoming increasingly severe; although the Tsunade of the past was disrespectful to him, she would never have appeared in the Hokage Office in a state of intoxication.

"Just a little."

"Just a tiny bit."

Tsunade held up her slender fingers, indicating a minuscule distance between her thumb and index finger.

But the Third saw within that gap the entirety of Konoha, and even the Ninja World.

"Alright, try not to drink if you can help it."

The Third offered a symbolic reminder, because he couldn't control her, nor did he have any reason to.

After all, for a woman, the death of a lover and family members was simply too heavy a burden.

Even for a woman like Tsunade.

"I called you here today to tell you..."

"War is about to begin again."

The Third's expression turned uncharacteristically serious.

"This time, the situation for Konoha might be far worse than the previous two wars."

Because the previous two Ninja World Wars had already proven that even without the God of Shinobi, Konoha's comprehensive strength still reigned supreme in the Ninja World.

No single ninja village could stand against Konoha.

Konoha was too powerful—so powerful that the vast majority of ninja villages had to unite just to carve a piece of flesh off it.

Therefore, there was a high probability that Konoha would face a multi-front assault this time.

This would place immense pressure on both Konoha's top-tier combatants and its overall military strength.

"That is why I still want you to go to the front lines,"

"To serve as the commander for the Land of Wind battlefield."

Upon hearing this, Tsunade laughed out loud, scoffing with the scent of alcohol on her breath, "Old man, have you gone senile?"

Second update delivered, please support me, masters! The second round of recommendations and PK is coming.

Keep reading and keep those recommendations coming!